Smoking is a practice in which a substance, most commonly tobacco, is burned and the product of the combustion is inhaled. The most common method of smoking today is through cigarettes, which are primarily industrially manufactured. Many other smoking implements exist, including cigars, pipes, hookahs, water pipes and vaporizers. In some cases, the substance being consumed may contain chemical compounds that may provide short- or long-term health benefits or may be used effectively to treat diseases or other conditions. But smoking in the conventional sense, through inhalation of smoke as a byproduct of the combustion of the substance to be smoked can be hazardous to one's health due to the existence of irritating, toxic, and carcinogenic compounds in the smoke. The hazards of breathing in smoke containing harmful compounds from the combustion of tobacco or other herbal substances may, in many cases, outweigh any benefits gained through the human consumption of such substances.
One common alternative to smoking via combustion is the use of a vaporizer. Vaporization is an alternative to burning that avoids the inhalation of many irritating toxic and carcinogenic by-products of combustion. Vaporization involves the use of a concentrate of an herbal substance, which may be an oil, resin, or other extract. During vaporization, the concentrate to be vaporized is heated to a temperature below its combustion point but high enough to release active ingredients within a vapor. Little or no combustion occurs during the vaporization process, so excessive smokiness may avoided by vaporization of a concentrate to be consumed.
There are a wide variety of different apparatus available for vaping. FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an example of a rig and nail apparatus 101. During operation the nail 102 (typically a hollow pin) may be heated, for example using a torch 103 or lighter, to a high temperature sufficient to vaporize a concentrate. A dabbing tool (not shown) may be used to apply (i.e., dab) a concentrate to the heated nail 102, where it vaporizes upon contact with the heated nail 102. In this rig and nail apparatus 101, the heated nail 102 is in communication with a chamber 104 partially filled with liquid such as water. Vapor 105 from the heated nail may be drawn through the hollow nail 102 into the chamber 104. Thereafter, the vapor 105 may be inhaled through the mouthpiece 106 of the apparatus 101. Vaporized concentrate consumed through the rig and nail apparatus 101 is typically smoother and free of large droplets of water.
As described above, during operation the nail is heated to high temperatures. In some cases it is desirable to remove the nail after vaporization, for example to clear the flow path that is restricted when the nail is in place on the rig. This may be desirable to ease inhalation and clearing of the rig, for example, for individuals suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or emphysema. Removal of the nail during operation is difficult, however, because the nail is heated to very high temperatures. In other cases, a heated nail may be dropped or fall out of the rig during operation. Picking up a heated nail from a table or floor may be difficult while the temperature of the nail remains elevated, creating a risk of burns and a fire hazard. Accordingly, there is a need for an apparatus to facilitate safe removal, handling, and manipulation of the heated nail during operation of the rig.